RAFA BENITEZ has stunned his stars by reading the riot act to his defenders in a bid to salvage their Premiership dream after the Mersey derby shambles.

The normally calm Spaniard lost his cool in a team meeting at Liverpool's Melwood training ground - and accused his defenders of being too soft on opposition strikers.

And his harsh words have lit the touch paper for today's crucial visit to Chelsea with Benitez demanding his men show some aggression against Jose Mourinho's Galactico stars.

"We have been too nice at times and I have told the players that sometimes defenders have to show aggression. We have not being doing that and have been making costly mistakes," said boss Benitez.

"I need to work with my players every week to make it clear what I want tactically because footballers have this habit of forgetting things if you don't keep on at them all the time. They slip into bad habits.

"That's what we've been doing since the Everton game - and against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League we were much better.

"I don't name names. I prefer to talk with players in private or in team meetings because I don't want to kill anyone publicly - but I have spoken to some of them and told them what I expect."

Benitez is expecting an immediate Premiership response after the 3-0 derby humiliation at Everton. "Last season we were really good at the back, but this time we have had problems - caused in some way by injuries to (Jamie) Carragher and (John Arne) Riise.

"We have been working on that this week and we will work some more. We haven't got the perfect team by any means and I am looking for us to improve - especially in defence. How far we have got to improve to get there, I don't know. All I can say is that I hope that over the next month we will improve on the mistakes we have shown so far this season.

"We kept 33 clean sheets last season - one short of Liverpool's club record. So while people talk about Pepe Reina and the mistake he made at Everton last week, the truth is that he has a better record than Ray Clemence had for Liverpool over his first 50 games.

"We have the same players as last year so we can get better defensively. There are reasons like international games and injuries, but if you ask me how far we are away from being the perfect team I would tell you we are far away."

Steven Gerrard (left) comes face to face with England rival Frank Lampard and the Liverpool midfielder will be a real threat roaming from the right with a licence to create havoc.

Benitez added: "On the right Gerrard gives us more attacking options and I have spoken to him about that. Now I think he has seen that for himself."